The TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts held UFC Fight Night 81, this past Sunday night. The main card would feature four fights; a lightweight bout between Francisco Trinaldo (19-4) and Ross Pearson (20-10), a heavyweight bout between Travis Browne (18-3-1) and Matt Mitrione (9-5), a lightweight bout between Anthony Pettis (18-4) and Eddie Alvarez (26-4), and the main even; where TJ Dillashaw (12-3) would attempt to defend his bantamweight belt against Dominick Cruz (21-1). Sunday’s event featured the first title fight ever to be aired on Fox Sports 1, and it couldn’t have asked for a more exciting story line coming into the night.
Trinaldo vs. Pearson
The action started with a battle of two lightweights. Brazil’s Francisco Trinaldo took on Ross Pearson. In the first round, both fighters spent a lot of time feeling each other out, with Trinaldo landing a slew of heavy shots in the final minute, finishing the round with a massive body slam right before the bell. The second round undoubtedly went to the Brazilian, who was the clear-cut aggressor all around, landing big punches and knees while he had Pearson pinned up against the fence.
At the start of the third and final round, Pearson was dealing with a pair of swollen eyes, but wasn’t going to let them stop him from having a chance at finishing the fight. Pearson showed some life, after another aggressive start to the round by Trinaldo, but ultimately could not amount enough of a comeback to finish the fight or sway the judges. The judges gave the fight to Trinaldo, who’s victory marked his fifth straight, and brought his UFC record to 9-3.
Browne vs. Mitrione
The second fight of the night was not without controversy. A heavyweight bout between Travis Browne and Matt Mitrione saw an early disaster, following not one, but two eye pokes by Browne to the right eye of Mitrione. The pokes, which stopped the fight both times, proved to be fight-altering as Travis exploited his opponent’s faulty vision, with a slew of punches and elbows to Matt’s blind side.
Browne was not penalized for either offense, and went on to win the fight, after knocking Mitrione down with a leg kick and delivering a punishing ground and pound. Referee Gary Foreman stopped the fight with Browne emerging victorious, and Mitrione left with one of the most gruesome swollen eyes ever seen in the octagon.
Alvarez vs. Pettis
The co-main event featured a lightweight bout that held serious championship contention implications. Former champ Anthony Pettis returned to the octagon, for the first time since losing his belt nearly a year ago, to face the number four contender Eddie Alvarez. The fight was one of the tightest of the night, and went down to the judges to decide who would possibly get the next shot at the lightweight title.
The first round was the closest of the fight, with Alvarez gaining the slight edge due to a couple of takedowns, despite not doing much on the ground. Pettis didn’t go down quietly in the first round however, landing a few damaging leg kicks, as he has been known to do in his career. The second round went to Pettis, who landed even more punishing kicks to the body of Alvarez, who appeared to be running out of gas as the round came to a close. However as round three started, Alvarez appeared to have gained a second wind, took Pettis down multiple times, and left him unable to sway the judges in his direction.
The very close fight had the judges scoring the contest 29-28 Alvarez, 29-28 Pettis, and 29-28 Alvarez, naming Eddie Alvarez the winner by split decision. The victory of the former champ leaves Alvarez with a very good chance at getting the next shot at the lightweight champion, which will be decided when current champ, Rafael dos Anjos, takes on featherweight champ Conor McGregor, on March 5.
Dillashaw vs. Cruz
Finally, after a night of close battles and a nightmare inducing eye injury, the main event was set to kick off. The battle for the bantamweight belt between current champ TJ Dillashaw and former champ Dominick Cruz was nothing short of inspiring. The fight, which has been hyped up for months since the return of a healthy Cruz, saw two of the most agile and precise fighters in the sport. The two dished it out in the months leading up to the fight, setting the stage for what was sure to be a battle for the ages.
The back story of the headlining fight began way back in July of 2011, when Dominick Cruz avenged his only career loss and defeated rival Urijah Faber to retain his belt. After another successful title defense against Demetrious Johnson, who is now among the top pound for pound fighters in the world, Cruz’s career took a downward spiral as he was hit with a slew of injuries. “The Dominator” was forced to pull out of another title defense against Faber, scheduled for mid-2012, due to a torn ACL, and didn’t return to the octagon until September of 2014.
Due to his extended absence, Cruz was forced to relinquish his bantamweight title, with the belt landing on the waist of TJ Dillashaw, after an upset over Renan Barao on May 24, 2014. Cruz made a statement in his return to the octagon, defeating Takeya Mizugaki in the first round in September of 2014. However, another torn ACL, this time in his other knee, left him sidelined for all of 2015.
TJ Dillashaw would defend his new-found belt twice in his reign as champion, which lasted more than a year and a half. However, Dillashaw’s reputation as a true champion was considered incomplete until he fought Cruz, the rightful owner of the belt. After a cancelled fight between the two back in 2014, due to Cruz’s second ACL surgery, the two finally got the chance to go at one another last night in the main event.
Cruz, the challenger, entered the octagon to the sound of cheers from the crowd, as making it that far despite all he’s been through was inspiring in itself. Weighing in at 135 lbs, standing 5’8″ with a 68″ reach, the 30-year-old was set to win back his belt.
Dillashaw, the champ, entered the octagon with the Red Hot Chili Pepper’s “Can’t Stop” blaring throughout the TD Garden, looking confident as ever as he went for his third title defense. The champion weighed in at 135 lbs, stood at 5’6″ with a 67″ reach, slightly shorter than the challenger.
The fight began with an incredibly close first round, where Cruz showed off his footwork, as Dillashaw chased him around the octagon. Despite Cruz’s elusiveness, TJ landed enough shots that made the round closer than it appeared.
Both the second and third rounds went to Cruz. His agility and quick movements resulted in a plethora of swings and misses by Dillashaw, with Cruz landing on a number of counters. Cruz took down Dillashaw a number of times, marking the first time the champion has ever been taken down in his career.
The fourth round saw Dillashaw remaining the aggressor with, a number of damaging kick to the body and legs of Cruz, visibly impairing his mobility. Dillashaw continued to attack the already limping Cruz, hoping that his efforts in the final 10 minutes of the fight were enough to give him the victory.
After the 25 minute, fast-paced championship fight, the decision came down to the judges. The fight was one of the closest of the year, with Cruz getting the nod from two out of three judges, and earning a split decision victory. He regained the title he was stripped of over two years ago.
The effort by Cruz, who has dealt with so much hardship in his career, showed that as grim as the future may look, it’s never over. Cruz said after the fight, “No one is retiring me except for me, I’ve been through too much.” Dominick Cruz is once again champion of the UFC’s bantamweight division, and his career that looked to be over just a few years ago has gained new life.
Other Action
Patrick Cote defeats Ben Saunders via TKO.
Ed Herman defeats Tim Boetsch via TKO.
Chris Wade defeats Mehdi Baghdad via submission.
Luke Sanders defeats Maximo Blanco via submission.
Paul Felder defeats Daron Cruickshank via submission.
Ilir Latifi defeats Sean O’Connell via knockout.
Charles Rosa defeats Kyle Bochniak via unanimous decision.
Rob Font defeats Joey Gomez via TKO.
Francimar Barroso defeats Elvis Mutapcic via unanimous decision.
